Belfast

[goats]

I didn’t know they had big gates they shut at night between Protestant and Catholic areas? How does that work? I’m trying to imagine a big gate between areas in Cardiff but it’s not happening or do they have gates on all roads?
What about the city centre, can they behave here or what? I’ve never been there but am quite intrigued to go someday

[IanD]

Re: Belfast

I didn’t know they had big gates they shut at night between Protestant and Catholic areas? How does that work? I’m trying to imagine a big gate between areas in Cardiff but it’s not happening or do they have gates on all roads?
What about the city centre, can they behave here or what? I’ve never been there but am quite intrigued to go someday

Exactly that. For many years there weren't gates that were safe to open. Back-to-back terraced houses could be pro IRA one side, backing on to pro UDA or UVF the other side. Not just gates across roads to separate communities but also walls, fences and barbed wire. Think Jerusalem and you've got the idea. I did a day trip (flew) from the Midlands with a school group to Belfast, once. A real eye opener. Ex IRA guide in the morning, handed over to an ex UDA at the peace line at lunchtime and then Stormont with ex IRA hunger striker, now politician, for the early evening. By coincidence, a relative was previously Chief Executive of Northern Ireland Transport. He only had one bus hijacked during his tenure although the Belfast-Dublin rail line was frequently the target of bomb scares. A fascinating city to visit with very welcoming people. Just chose the moment carefully.....and your guide(s).

[islandblue]

Re: Belfast

I didn’t know they had big gates they shut at night between Protestant and Catholic areas? How does that work? I’m trying to imagine a big gate between areas in Cardiff but it’s not happening or do they have gates on all roads?
What about the city centre, can they behave here or what? I’ve never been there but am quite intrigued to go someday

Went there three years ago. The city bus tour takes you to Falls/Shankill road area where there are Peace gates which are shut at night. The tour guide mentioned the tensions are lessened now but the two communities would rather stick to their own areas. The paramilitary style murals on the sides of houses have to be seen to be believed. The Titanic quarter is amazing and the original slipways where Olympic and Titanic were built have been refurbished as part of the museum. The local people are really friendly and Belfast City airport is only a 15 minute taxi ride to the city centre.

[Rock_Flock_of_Five]

Re: Belfast

I wasn't aware of this either. Bloody difficult to manage, I would think. What if you come back late, after a night out, and the gates are closed - you try to climb over or your produce ID and they let you in?

[billy.ronson]

Re: Belfast

Went to Belfast to watch Cardiff Devils, Taxi driver gave us a little tour en route to hotel showed us the peace walls and the gates mentioned on Falls road.

[Dave Blue]

Re: Belfast

I had the tour, very interesting. Such a shame it has been reignited by Brexit. Boris and his cronies have a lot to answer for.

[Taunton Blue Genie]

Re: Belfast

I had the tour, very interesting. Such a shame it has been reignited by Brexit. Boris and his cronies have a lot to answer for.

Quite.

[Gofer Blue]

Re: Belfast

I had the tour, very interesting. Such a shame it has been reignited by Brexit. Boris and his cronies have a lot to answer for.

I'm not sure that's the reason - it may be the excuse. I rather think the recent funeral of the ex-IRA "intelligence officer" attended by leading Sinn Fein politicians has more to do with it. It wasn't just a funeral, more of a Republican demonstration which was guaranteed to aggravate the loyalist community (leaving aside the disregard for COVID restrictions). The fact that the PSNI were basically scared to interfere in case of stoking up more trouble says it all.

[Gofer Blue]

Re: Belfast

I went to Belfast and then on to Craigavon on a business trip. What I always remember was the murals on the walls and the Union Jack flags all over the place.

[light up the darkness]

Re: Belfast

A few years ago I had a rather bowel loosening moment in the Crown in the centre of Belfast. So much so that I have never felt the urge to return.

Lovely warm generous people but some scary fkrs around the place

[Taunton Blue Genie]

Re: Belfast

I booked flights to see Belfast on an independent day trip to see the murals before the so-called Peace Process kicked in.
It just seemed such an alien concept and fascinating in a macabre way.
One thing I remember was when the bus went from one side of the wall to the other, the football shirts being worn by the inhabitants being a major marker i.e. Celtic shirts and Rangers shirts respectively.
Many of the town and village names en route to the city from the airport seemed like a catalogue of locations associated with the troubles.
Very alien indeed.

[IanD]

Re: Belfast

I wasn't aware of this either. Bloody difficult to manage, I would think. What if you come back late, after a night out, and the gates are closed - you try to climb over or your produce ID and they let you in?

Very unlikely you would go for a drink outside your own community. The only things going over the peace wall were, and are, petrol bombs, fireworks, bricks and "waste". Predictably, Johnson selling Ulster for a Brexit deal, has facilitated opening old wounds. Such a shame as matters were much improved on the 70s to the 90s.

[xsnaggle]

Re: Belfast

A few years ago I had a rather bowel loosening moment in the Crown in the centre of Belfast. So much so that I have never felt the urge to return.

Lovely warm generous people but some scary fkrs around the place

The Crown is a great pub. Opposite what was the most bombed building in the world. Leadened windows, (like Dickens) still gas lamps inside and little snugs all though the bar. All those bombs and it never lost those very expensive windows.
Back in the day a loyalist pub, and a few metres up the road another pub, The Beaten Docket which was are republican as could be. Fascinating place Belfast but most of the old 'hard' areas have been demolished now.

[xsnaggle]

Re: Belfast

These people don't need much of an excuse to start trouble, specially when it is orchestrated by the boyos who only have money in mind. They use idealists to do their dirty work for them.

In the scottish independence thread a few posters commented that now the majority of ulster would vote for a united Ireland and don't want any troubles. I told them they were living in a dream but they don't believe me.
Maybe the last couple of weeks will give food for thought.

[elytillidie]

Re: Belfast

I booked flights to see Belfast on an independent day trip to see the murals before the so-called Peace Process kicked in.
It just seemed such an alien concept and fascinating in a macabre way.
One thing I remember was when the bus went from one side of the wall to the other, the football shirts being worn by the inhabitants being a major marker i.e. Celtic shirts and Rangers shirts respectively.
Many of the town and village names en route to the city from the airport seemed like a catalogue of locations associated with the troubles.
Very alien indeed.

Went there on a few ships quite a while back, some little things I remember. We used to drink in the Harland & Wolff Welders club, one of our lads wore a St Christopher in there one night, and was told in no uncertain terms to remove it. A member of a band who played there one evening told me they played Catholic and Protestant places, just had to remember to play the right anthem at the end. Some local drunkenly showed me one of the murals one night, said they wanted the soldiers out so they could murder every last Catholic b*stard; and there's me a Catholic. Leaving East Belfast in a taxi heading for the City Centre, we asked where the safest place was for us to go, he said East Belfast, though I found the centre to be a bit of a neutral place, like Glasgow. Near the Shankhill Road I was assured that I wouldn't get beat up for being a Brit, but could easily get beat up being a stranger in a rough area, which was a great comfort. It was an eye opener in those days.
Last time I went there was to renew my US Visa, got chatting to a young man waiting at the embassy, turned out to be Fernandinho of Man City.